Under BECTU's electoral rules, I am standing as a candidate for both the Presidency and the union's National Executive.
If re-elected as a BBC representative on the union's ruling body, I will ensure that the branches and officials who look after our BBC members are given the resources they need to continue the uphill struggle that we have been fighting since Mark Thompson took over.
Compared to many employers, the BBC is still, from a union point of view, fairly good to deal with. BECTU is properly recognised, dialogue between union and management takes place on a daily basis from the top to the bottom of the organisation, and our arguments on behalf of staff often win the day.
Yet, from a staff point of view, the leadership of the BBC has never been less trusted or admired, as the recent staff survey showed.
Last year's one-day strike was a mass vote against the management, as much as it was a vote against job cuts. It was a good starting point for the union's effort to minimise compulsory redundancies, and we have been more successful than anyone predicted in ensuring that, so far, more than 95% of Thompson's cuts have been voluntary.
Sadly, one of the reasons for this is that morale in most parts of the BBC is so low that an invitation for redundancy volunteers to step forward usually produces a deluge.
Once Thompson's changes are complete, BECTU needs to focus on making the BBC a better place to work, with or without the support of management.
- We need to win a firm commitment to in-house programme-making - we should argue for the highest-possible volume of quality programmes.
- We must challenge the long-hours culture that has become endemic particularly in production areas, endangering health, familiy lives, and programme quality.
- We should continue fighting against the creeping privatisation of the BBC - we lost the argument over Technology and Broadcast, even though we won decent deals for the members affected, but will probably need to fight again over Resources and Worldwide, as well as defending the hundreds of members facing imminent outsourcing or the LST handover.
- We have to prevent the workloads of departed staff in areas like Finance and Human Resources simply being dumped on those who remain elsewhere in the BBC.
- We must defend the pension rights of BBC staff - possibly the biggest single issue we face in the coming year after the mass redundancies.
- We should ensure that new technology is introduced sensibly, and in ways that improve programme output. Cut costs, by agreement, where possible, but don't cut the quality.
BECTU should stand up for properly-funded public broadcasting, delivered by an independent BBC which makes the majority of its programming and other content in-house.
The union needs to increase its membership in the BBC, using as an example the recent experience of staff facing job cuts or privatisation.
In BBC areas with a high union membership, BECTU has managed to influence changes and protect members. In low-membership areas, staff have discovered that they are exposed and vulnerable.
We can't assume that the process of change will be over at the BBC once Thompson's job cuts are complete, and a strong union presence will still be essential to protect staff.
I hope to serve another two years on the union's NEC, standing up for the things that are still good about the BBC's mission, while fighting against those management policies that undermine its public-service objectives.
